


Librarian Girl

by Bella_Monoxide



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: AU - No ZA, College, Daryl and Paul are friends, Falling In Love, Flirting (kinda), M/M, Maybe some kissing?, Paul is a little shit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-15
Updated: 2016-09-15
Packaged: 2018-08-15 06:24:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8045689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bella_Monoxide/pseuds/Bella_Monoxide
Summary: Daryl and Rick have been noticing each other around college for some time now, but neither of them has managed to step up and talk to the other yet. Then, accidents and coincidences happen, and maybe, with a little help from their friends, our favorite boys might be able to find their way towards each other.





	Librarian Girl

**Author's Note:**

> I started on an SPN-marathon a couple months ago. One of the episodes I watched recently features a great quote, and I made the mistake to mention in a chat with my fellow writers what a great prompt that quote would be. Well. The things we writers do to ourselves, right? Anywho, I used that quote in a TWD context of course. Please let me know what you think about it!

> "Your kind of librarian or my kind of librarian?"
> 
> "Well she was wearing clothes, if that's what you mean..."
> 
>  

Daryl Dixon had been waiting for his friend Maggie to show up for their meeting for over ten minutes already, sitting at one of the more secluded tables in the coffee shop just off campus, when he heard those scraps of an ongoing conversation.

He looked up, curious to find out who was talking; only to realise that one of the two guys was the curly-haired, handsome looking one with the brilliant blue eyes, who appeared to constantly be in the obnoxious company of his dark-haired friend.

Daryl sighed, absentmindedly pulling out his phone to check his messages, thinking that even if he were able to find the courage to engage the dark-blonde dude into a casual conversation, he surely was unlikely to do so in the presence of his cocky friend.

Reading the message from Maggie, he realised that the guys were likely talking about her, since the mishap preventing her from keeping their appointment was described briefly; and it sounded quite similar to the one the guys were talking about.

"Really, Shane," the handsome one said defensively, "it was an honest to god accident – I only looked down at my booklist for a moment. Next thing I knew, she was standing right there, and I had spilled the last dregs of my coffee-to-go all over her slacks and blouse!"

Shane laughed and shook his head. "Rick," he said, his expression changing into a sly one, "please tell me that at least you got her number..?"

While Rick, who had looked genuinely sorry about his accident, explained that he did not, Daryl quietly rolled his eyes and snorted, thinking about Maggie's boyfriend Glenn and how nobody stood a chance of getting between those two – no matter how handsome they might be.

Daryl drank the last few gulps of his plain black coffee while he continued to listen in on Rick's conversation.

"You know, Rick, I just don't get it," Shane said, "that way, you'll never get laid."

Rick groaned, rubbing his hand over his face. "Shane, stop..!"

But Shane plowed right on. "Come on, Rick! You gotta use this opportunity! I mean, you'll only attend college once, right?"

As Daryl got up to pay, he saw how Rick rolled his eyes and told Shane to shut up, or else he would tell Lori what he had said, to which Shane visibly blanched. His blurted reply that Rick would not dare was the last thing Daryl heard as he slipped out of the café.

Consequently, he was unable to see how Rick looked over to that table in the corner Daryl had been occupying, searching for the cute guy with the hooded eyes that hid so often behind straggly bangs, hanging into a seemingly rough, but at second glance handsome face with chisled features.

* * *

The next time Daryl saw Rick happened a few days later at a gay-club in Atlanta. It was Saturday, and Daryl had agreed to meet his friend Paul there. Leaning against the bar somewhere in the back of the club, nursing a beer, Daryl watched the other patrons, waiting for Paul to turn up.

Suddenly, the guy stood at his side, bumping shoulders with Daryl. His greeting went unheard, as a rather undignified yelp had escaped Daryl's mouth, and Paul laughed with glee, rubbing his hands together.

"Jesus!" Daryl shouted. "Do ya always have ta sneak up on me like that?!"

A self-satisfied smirk on his face, Paul answered. "Yep, I do."

"Why?!" Daryl groused, but Paul appeared unperturbed by his antics.

"'Cause I'm the only one who can." He grinned mischievously before he added "Besides, I love how you scream my name." He wiggled his eyebrows, a smile playing around his full lips, almost hidden by the full beard Paul wore in addition to his shoulder-length hair. His overall impression had lead to his nickname. Daryl rolled his eyes, blushing slightly at the innuendo.

"Stop it, Paul," he grumbled, but his friend just laughed.

"Come on, Daryl, I gotta tease you a bit. You just look too cute blushing like that."

"I don't blush," Daryl hissed, but Paul grinned knowingly, before he changed topics and asked if Daryl had spotted any interesting men so far. Daryl was just about to deny that, when his eyes widened and his mouth dropped open. Paul followed his line of sight across the club and took in the appearance of Rick, who was talking to another guy whose hair was just as curly as Rick's, but shorter.

"Oh, that's Aaron," he said absentmindedly, "I saw him at some charity event on campus."

Daryl, tearing his eyes away to look at Paul, said "You mean the other guy, with the shorter hair, right? Because that's Rick there..." he nodded his chin descreetly in the direction of the guy Aaron was talking to.

Paul's eyes widened. "I'm sure there is a reason why you got all flustered at the mere sight of Rick..?"

Daryl told him about seeing Rick on campus as well, and he added the talk between Rick and Shane he overheard the other day. He had caught up with Maggie in the meantime, who had been as amused as Daryl had been over Shane's suggestion for Rick to try and get into her pants.

But she had also assured him that Rick had been the perfect gentleman after his mishap.

Paul nodded in understanding. "I know that Aaron is in a steady relationship, but I don't know with whom." When he saw how Daryl's face fell, he hastily added "But if he's always with that Shane dude, surely he would know if Rick had a boyfriend?"

Daryl shrugged helplessly. "Maybe, but then again..."

Paul nodded once more, since it was a known fact that coming out of the proverbial closet was still an issue with a lot of guys. "Maybe he's bisexual, even," he suggested, and Daryl sighed audibly.

"Doesn't matter anyway," he mumbled, a note of hopelessness creeping into his voice, "I'll never be brave enough to talk to him anyways."

Paul threw an arm around Daryl's impressive shoulders, pulling him into a one-armed hug. "I think you will, Daryl." He talked right over Daryl's protests. "Come on, seriously – the way you looked at him? You like him so much, you will find the courage to talk to him eventually."

After a bout of silence he added with a mischievous glint in his huge blue eyes that so often feigned innocence. "Or would you like me to try and flirt with him? Test the waters for you a bit?"

Daryl huffed angrily, and he shoved Paul none too gently. "No way, José!"

Paul, nonplussed by Daryl's antics, leaned back in and, without losing a beat, retorted. "It's still Jesus, but I'll give you a pass this time cause you're cute."

* * *

While Paul continued to tease Daryl, Aaron subtly pointed them out to Rick.

"I like the roughened look of those two," Aaron stated, looking at Rick, waiting for his reply. Rick, upon realising that one of them was the guy he had recently seen in the café, stared for a moment, his jaw dropping.

Alarmed, Aaron looked at him, waiting impatiently for Rick to explain his reaction. Clearing his throat, Rick said "I saw that one with the ripped off sleeves and the hooded eyes on campus a couple times." Aaron nodded, and Rick added "He's the one I told you about the other day, remember?"

Aaron scrunched up his face in thought for a moment before he asked "Oh, the elusive guy you saw in that café, who had suddenly vanished?"

Rick only nodded before he sighed. Aaron, always aiming to take a positive approach at life, smiled reassuringly. "Well, at least now you know that he's batting for the right team!"

Rick looked rather unconvinced, but before he could answer, Aaron's boyfriend arrived, and they got tangled up in greetings, then went to grab a table together. Rick tried to keep track of the guy he felt like getting to know better overt he course of the night, but just like the other day at the café, suddenly, he was nowhere to be seen anymore.

Realising that he must have left the club, Rick let out a frustrated groan. Both Aaaron and his partner, tizian-haired Eric, looked at him questioningly, and Rick explained. "He vanished yet again, dammit." Rick huffed. "It's like he's a damn Houdini!"

Laughing, both Aaron and Eric shook their heads.

"Why don't you try to find his friend," Aaron suggested.

Eric, a thoughtful expression on his handsome face, added "Wait, wasn't that Paul?"

When Aaron and Rick looked at him, waiting for further explanations, he said "You know, the one who looks oddly like Jesus?"

They nodded, and Rick asked how Eric knew Paul. "Just from campus, I guess. He's always running around in our department," Eric elaborated, while Aaron mumbled almost to himself. "Yeah, I thought I saw him around."

At some point Rick had to use the restrooms, and he decided to keep an eye out for Paul on his way. He strolled through the club, but did not see him, and ultimately assumed that he had left with the other guy.

When he stood in the bathroom, washing his hands, he suddenly felt a presence to his right. Startled, he gazed into the cracked mirror above the sink, where his eyes met a pair of equally bright blue ones.

Paul smirked at him. "Did I scare ya?" He asked, a gleam of triumph sparkling in his eyes.

Rick huffed. But when he answered, Paul's eyes widened.

"Actually, I was looking for you, but assumed you had already left. You know, with that guy I saw you with earlier, over at the bar?" Rick explained.

Then, when he got no reply, he stuck out his hand and introduced himself. "I'm Rick, by the way. You're Paul, right?"

Shaking his head, Paul took the offered hand and asked "Geez. Are you plannin' on going into law enforcement or something? How do you know my name?"

Rick grinned. "I only heard it from Eric tonight," he explained. "Aaron's partner – Aaron being the guy I'm here with tonight."

Paul nodded. "Right, I thought I had seen Aaron before..."

Rick suggested for them to grab a drink at the bar, but Paul declined politely. Apparently, he had picked up a guy for the night, as he put it, and Rick smiled, wishing him luck. They stood in the main room of the club again, about to say goodbye, when Paul leaned in.

"Why were you searching for me, Rick? That got anything to do with my friend Daryl..?" He winked, and Rick felt his cheeks heat up.

"Yeah," he confirmed, "wanted to ask you about his name and what programme he's in."

Paul said "Oh Daryl is in automotive. He's quite good with his hands..." He added suggestively, just to see Rick's reaction; promptly, Rick's eyes widened, while his blush deepened even more.

"Well," Paul added, his tone changing to conspiratorial, "Lemme give you a little bit of good advice.."

He left the club moments later, an arm slung around the waist of his new aquaintance, leaving a speechless Rick in his wake. It took Rick a few minutes before he turned to walk back to Aaron and Eric, shaking his head as he went, a disbelieving expression on his handsome face.

* * *

On Monday, when he was on his way to the library on campus, Rick thought back to that night, and the moment he told Aaron and Eric about his encounter with Paul. He could not help but smile again, as he remembered how Eric's face had lit up as soon as Rick had revealed Daryl's name, while Aaron had groaned under his breath, rolling his eyes.

Aaron had even asked his boyfriend to please not start, but Eric had merly laughed and carried on to tell Rick everything he never wanted to know about a movie called Deliverance, and how Rick's enthusiastic revelation of his heartthrob's (Rick still had trouble believing that Eric had actually used that term) name had sparked his little digression.

When Aaron had continued to frown playfully, Eric had swatted his arm and scolded him, demanding for Aaron to at least admit how much he liked for Eric to play a tune called Duelling Banjos on his violin. Gathering that it must be a song from said movie, Rick had sat back while Aaron and Eric went on squabbling jokingly for a while longer, letting his thoughts wander.

Of course, his friends had eventually caught up on that, and their evening had ended in a long string of playful banter.

Smiling, Rick put his stuff into one of the lockers before he entered the library, walking over to the section on English literature. It did not take him long to get lost in the numerous titles available, and it took quite some time for him to remember why he was there in the first place. Only then did he get out his book list and began to actively search for the ones he needed for his next paper.

As he pulled a copy of one of the books from a shelf, he chuckled under his breath, thinking back to how Paul had asked him if he was going into law enforcement. He had thought about it, even assumed that would be his path for the longest time, seeing as his dad was the local sheriff in his hometown.

But ultimately, it had been his dad who had sat him down to talk, asking him if he really thought that was what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. Father and son had had a long and, for the most part, serious conversation, resulting in Rick's decision to go with his heart's desire instead.

He was not sure if he would go into teaching or do something else instead yet, but he still had time to decide.

When he had gathered everything the shelves had to offer, he went to get his name marked down for two books that were currently unavailable, before he walked into one of the many reading area's to work in the quiet of the library for a while.

Disgruntled, because a quick glance had told him all his favorite spots were already occupied, he had to walk further into the library, moving on to sections he had not frequented yet.

Rick felt like smacking his own forehead when he realised that he had somehow managed to forget the advice Paul had given him, after he had spotted Daryl's impressive shoulders hunched over several books he had spread out on the table in front of him, his face scrunched up in concentration.

Shaking his head over his own obliviousness, Rick resolved to at least try and use the opportunity, walking up to Daryl with what he hoped was a confident stride. But even if he managed to pull it off, his efforts went unnoticed, for Daryl only realised that he had company when Rick was almost standing next to him.

Startled, he looked up at Rick, who greeted him politely, keeping his voice on the library-accepted level, but his words did not seem to register with Daryl, who continued to stare at him as if he had just gotten out of a UFO that had landed in the middle of the library.

Rick smiled nervously and tried again when he realised that Daryl had not heard him. He cleared his throat and said "Um, I met your friend Paul at the club on Saturday after you had already left. My name is Rick, and you are Daryl, right?"

Finally, Daryl managed a nod, and an audible sigh of relief escaped Rick's lips. "Whew," he said, shaking his head slightly, "for a minute there I feared Paul had pulled another stunt on me. You mind if I sit down for a moment?"

Daryl muttered something that sounded like 'sure', and Rick sank down onto the edge of the chair next to him, putting his own books on the table next to Daryl's. Scrambling his brain in search for a topic to break the ice, Rick almost missed out on the first real sentence Daryl managed to get out.

"What did ya mean, 'another stunt'? What was the first one, then?" He asked, air quoting the term, and Rick laughed quietly.

"Well, I was washing my hands in the bathroom, and suddenly he stood behind me." Rick grinned, and Daryl smirked knowingly when Rick continued. "He even had the audacity to ask if he scared me! He always like that?" He asked, and Daryl relaxed visibly.

"Yep," he said, smiling, "does that to me all the time. Guy 's a freakin' ninja."

Rick looked confused, and Daryl elaborated. "I mean it, kinda at least. Paul is big into martial arts, hence the creepy skills. I mean," he carried on thoughtfully, "he even can pull one over me, and that's a rare gift. Sneaking up on a Dixon is no easy feat."

"Why?" Rick asked, a curious expression on his face, and Daryl told him about his childhood, when he and his older brother had to hunt to bring food to the table, resulting in Daryl's excellent skills. Of course, Daryl did not use those exact words, but Rick sensed that he had a tendency to sell himself short.

They talked for a moment longer, but then Rick got up to grab a table to study, leaving Daryl to do the same. Distracted by exchanging see-you-soons, Daryl only noticed the note with Rick's number after he had already left his line of sight.

Rick, as soon as he had sat down in a different section, found that he had a harder time to immerse himself into his favorite subject matter than he normally did. He could not help but think back to his encounter with Daryl, the picture of how he looked like close up and the sound of his deep voice with the hint of a southern drawl still too fresh on his mind.

Little did he know that Daryl had the same trouble. On top of that, Daryl could not believe that Rick actually seemed to be interested in him. Sitting at his table, fiddling with the little note that bore the scribbled 'call me' and Rick's name in addition to the number, Daryl looked off into the middle distance.

Roughly an hour later, he decided to at least send Rick a text message, and he got up, grabbed his stuff and hurried out of the library. On his way to the lockers, he sent off a text to Paul after overcoming his nerves and texting Rick so he would have Daryl's number as well.

Consequently, he did not watch his step too closely, and bumped into another student in front of the lockers, his books tumbling out of his arms to the floor. Cursing under his breath, Daryl bent to pick them up, soon to be joined by the other student. Daryl's head shot up when that student spoke.

"Daryl, I'm sorry, but I didn't pay any attention," Rick blurted, and Daryl looked at him, bewildered.

"What 're you apologisin' for, Rick?" He asked. "I ran into you, remember?" He shook his head as they both got back up, and, after a moment of awkward silence, Daryl went to open the locker he had used and began to put his books into his backpack.

Rick handed the ones he had picked up over, and Daryl muttered a word of thanks, blushing from the way Rick's fingers had lingered just a second too long on Daryl's. Bashfully looking up at Rick from underneath the strands of hair hanging into his face, Daryl listened to Rick, who was in the middle of explaining how he had been reading Daryl's text when they bumped into each other, but came to a sudden halt as soon as Daryl's eyes met his own.

Rick visibly gulped before he whispered "Do you even realise..?" He did not finish the sentence, his hand almost touching Daryl's cheek, when his eyes widened, and he stepped back. "I'm sorry, Daryl, I didn't mean to be, I don't know, suddenly all up in your personal space, I guess..."

When he took another step backwards, Daryl manged to pull himself out of his stupor. He grabbed Rick's arm to stop him. "Don't." A tiny pull later, Rick was standing even closer to Daryl than before, and his eyes widened when Daryl added "Tell me what you were about to say before you stepped back."

Drawing a deep breath, Daryl shook his head just slightly. "Doesn't matter," he added, and it was Rick's turn to look confused. But before he could get a question out, Daryl continued.

"You can tell me some other time. But I want you to know that I would really like for you to be in my personal space more often." And with that, he pulled a puzzled looking Rick into his arms, kissing him right then and there, in front of the lockers, for the whole world to see.

* * *

But it just so happened that the world was comprised of just one person, watching the unfolding scene from behind another section of lockers, his blue eyes sparkling and a fond smile pulling at his mouth. Paul Monroe waited until Rick and Daryl had left, then he went to grab a locker himself, already thinking up ways to tease Daryl about the encounter he had just witnessed.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Here is the quote:
> 
> "Your kind of librarian or my kind of librarian?"
> 
> "Well she was wearing clothes, if that's what you mean..."
> 
> SPN, S06E17 My Heart Will Go On


End file.
